UFC Confident Its New Fight Pass Will Be A Hit

It’s a risk and the UFC knows it. But if the largest, most successful MMA company in the world can make its Fight Pass Digital Network work, the company could revolutionize how fans watch sports.

The UFC will debut the experiment for a live-event broadcast at UFC Fight Night: Saffiedine vs. Lim, at Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands Expo and Convention Centre.

“UFC Fight Pass is a must-have for any MMA fan,” Marshall Zelaznik, the UFC’s chief content officer, told USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday. “We are giving fans access to the biggest MMA fight library in the world, plus delivering a minimum of 10 live and exclusive events fans won’t see anywhere else, as well as access to live Fight Pass prelims before pay-per-view and televised fight cards.”

Zelaznik also told USA Today Sports that UFC execs have been “blown away” by the interest in the product and that the company’s website has experienced record traffic since the announcement of the Fight Pass

The online subscription service is available for free through Feb. 28. The service is available in the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

When the trial period ends, the UFC Fight Pass will cost $9.99 per month. Fans will have on-demand access to the company’s entire library of past contests, including PRIDE, Strikeforce and WEC fights.

The service is accessible online through desktop and laptops at UFC.tv/fightpass. According to USA Today sports, the UFC is looking to make the Fight Pass available on tablets, smart TVs and some smart phones.

“We’ve always been ahead of the game with new technology and finding new ways to reach our fans with our content, but we’ve clearly launched UFC Fight Pass at the right time,” Zelaznik said. “With the popularity of digital platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu, everyone gets what this is: access to a huge library of on-demand content, plus live fights.”

Joshua Molina is an award-winning journalist who has worked for a variety of media publications, including the San Jose Mercury News, where he covered San Jose City Hall. Molina has covered MMA since 2007 and previously worked for Strikeforce as a staff writer. Molina enjoys reporting and blogging about MMA and pro wrestling, and often the convergence of the two.

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